Areas with pending low-wage Labour Market Impact Assessment applications will no longer be processed, starting from July 11.
The Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) in Canada has seen some changes, particularly in the low-wage stream, due to unemployment rates in certain regions.
As of July 11, 26 Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs) are ineligible for obtaining or extending work permits under the low-wage stream of the TFWP. These regions will not process low-wage LMIA applications until the third quarter of 2025. The federal government announced this measure in 2024, stating that it would no longer process low-wage LMIAs in CMAs that have an unemployment rate of 6% or higher.
The unemployment rates of the listed CMAs range from 6.1% to 11%. For instance, St. Catharines-Niagara, Ontario has an unemployment rate of 6.4%, while Windsor, Ontario has an unemployment rate of 11%. On the other hand, cities like Ottawa-Gatineau, Ontario/Quebec, and Montreal, Quebec have unemployment rates of 6.4% and 6.9% respectively.
If a foreign worker's job offer is in one of the affected CMAs and falls under the low-wage stream, they can consider asking their employer to increase the wage, waiting three months to see if unemployment rates change, focusing their job hunt on CMAs where low-wage LMIAs are still being processed, or focusing their job hunt on an exempt occupation. Specific occupations in primary agriculture, construction, food manufacturing, hospitals, nursing and residential care facilities, and in-home care are exempt from this measure.
Foreign workers who lose status can apply for a visitor record to remain in Canada as a visitor. Additionally, workers on a low-wage TFWP work permit who lose status because their permit cannot be extended must stop working. However, workers on a TFWP closed work permit who lose their job can benefit from a Covid-19 era temporary public policy. Under this policy, a foreign worker on a closed work permit can obtain authorization from IRCC to begin working for a new employer and/or in a new occupation prior to obtaining a new work permit.
To find out if your location is affected by the ineligibility for low-wage TFWP work permits, use the Census of Population website and check if the CMA is included in the list provided. ESDC has been publishing a list of CMAs with unemployment rates of 6% or higher every three months since then.
It is important to note that employers cannot hire a foreign worker under the TFWP, and a TFWP worker cannot renew their work permit without an LMIA. If a worker applied to extend or change their work permit before it expired, they can stay in Canada and keep working under the same conditions until IRCC makes a decision. This is called 'maintained status.'
On July 27, ESDC increased the wage thresholds for the TFWP. Whether a foreign national is eligible for the high-wage or low-wage stream of the TFWP depends on whether their salary is above or lower than the wage threshold in that province or territory. For more specific advice, it is recommended to consult with a professional immigration law firm, such as the Cohen Immigration Law Firm.
